You Found Me
by dragongoddess13
Summary: She was broken, even if no one else could see it. He was far from qualified to fix her, but maybe that wasn't such a bad thing. Maybe they could bumble along the path of redemption together... Maybe.


You Found Me

Part 1: Meeting  
Jem Coughlin X OC (Rori O'Laughlin)

xXx

Hiya, so this is a little AU. I finally started reading my copy of The Town ( aka The Prince of Thieves.) The characters are all the same with the exception of a personality shift, I just changed events and times to fit the idea. There are a few references to things in the book.

Summary: She was broken, even if no one else could see it. He was far from qualified to fix her, but maybe that wasn't such a bad thing. Maybe they could bumble along the path of redemption together... Maybe

* * *

James "Jem" Coughlin had a reputation, they all did, the whole lot of them. Doug, Jem, Gloansy, and Des, the boys of Charlestown. At seventeen they were the youngest gang of bank robbers in Boston history, robbing seven banks successfully before being caught by federal agents.

Now with each man now passing thirty, their only reputation since their thirteen year stint is based on attitude and presence more so than their past crimes. They were tough, they had to be, but crime wasn't something they had chosen lightly and most certainly wasn't something they were willing to jump back into, having only been out for one year.

They weren't angels, they weren't saints, but at the end of the day they were there for each other, for the people they cared about, and for the people of their town who were there for them in return.

* * *

Jem, Douggy, and Gloansy began working odd jobs around the neighborhood after their release. On the days that they worked they usually met at the local ice rink for lunch, something they started doing in high school when they skipped class.

As usual they had made themselves comfortable on the bleachers around the rink, a pizza between them (extra payment to Jem for fixing the oven at the local pizzeria), and comments here and there about people from their past they'd run into recently.

In front of them a few small groups of people were skating around the ice, couples, children with parents, and the occasional employee making sure everyone was behaving. To be honest it was rather dead for the popular hangout spot, usually the bleachers were filled, but today-including the boys- there was only a few parents on the opposite side and a young woman who looked about their age sitting down the bleachers from them lounged out with a book, her feet propped up on the big black duffle bag in front of her.

"You hear about Johnny?" Douggy asked taking a bite of his pizza.

Gloansy replied. "Nah, what happened?"

"He got pinched." Jem interrupted taking a drink out of his long neck.

"For what?" They heard behind them. They turned to see Dez take a seat next to Douggy, snatching up a slice of pizza.

"Hey man thought you had to work?" Douggy greeted handing him a beer from the cooler on his other side.

"Boss man gave me the rest of the day off since I did all that over time last month." He explained. "Gonna answer my question?"

"Coppas' nailed him for the convenient store robbery last week." Was Douggy's reply.

"Yea, but he's only gonna do a nickel. He flipped on his partners, got a plea deal." Jem added casually.

"Bummer. That's not gonna end well for him." Gloansy said ushering in a round of silence as the four friends sat casually, people watching. Eventually the conversation picked up again, just the usual random bits and pieces of their lives, anecdotes, funny stories, and a bit of foul mouthed fun. Within the hour the rink began to empty leaving the four men, the young woman down the way and one of the janitors running the Zamboni for the usual hourly cleaning.

"Did you guys bring your pads?" Douggy finally asked as the Zamboni left the ice.

"Always." Jem said followed by an affirmative from Gloansy.

"Only my goalie pads though." Gloansy added.

"Same." Was Douggy's reply. He turned to Dez with a question in his gaze. He shook his head.

"Sorry man, I came straight from work."

"So we got two goalies and one player." Jem reasoned. "We could practice taking shots at each other." The smirk on his face gave away the ruthless streak that still lived in him.

"You mean you could practice taking shots at us." Gloansy amended for him. Jem chuckled finishing off his beer.

"That could be fun."

Douggy sighed. "Oh why the hell not?" He said exasperated, standing from the bench. "Ima hit the head then grab my pads from the car."

"Right behind ya." Gloansy followed him out, sparring a glance at the young woman who was still reading on the bench in the next section. He noticed a hockey stick in the straps of the duffel bag beneath her feet. A thought struck him and picked an old wrapper off the floor, balling it up and tossing it at the back of Jem's head. He jumped as the paper connected turning to glare at the bigger man.

Gloansy gestured for him to follow and after a short starring contest he did, pulling Dez with him. "What's your issue, man?" Jem asked following him into the bathroom. Douggy looked to them from the sink where he was washing his hands.

"That chick that's been sitting there since before we got here has a stick." Gloansy replied as if that was the answer to the meaning of life.

"So." Jem retorted.

"So, you been starrin' at her since we got here. If she can play we should ask her to. Who knows you might get lucky." Gloansy said cockily.

"That's not a bad idea." Douggy interjected. "Lord only knows how badly you need to get laid."

"Fuck you." Jem snapped looking around. "I ain't playin' hockey with no girl." He continued. "She'd probably break a nail and have to quit."

"Wow, you're really testy today." Dez said off handedly. Jem turned on him, shooting him a fierce glare. Dez opened his mouth to say something only to shut it again when Douggy shook his head, a gesture meant to say 'don't bother'.

"Why don't we put it to a vote?" Gloansy joked, drawing Jem's attention.

"Sounds good, all in favor say aye." Douggy goaded. Three 'ayes' rang out around the small bathroom.

"Fuckin'..." Jem cut himself off storming out and back to the rink. He ignored the laughter that escaped the bathroom as the door opened behind him.

Jem stormed back into the rink stadium, stopping as he caught sight of someone on the ice. He quickly realized it was the girl they were talking about previously. He watched her skating around the ice, stick in hand, making slap shots every so often.

If he was honest with himself he really had been starring. She was nice to look at he couldn't deny that, but really who were they to imply he needed help finding a woman. He was James Coughlin; even women who knew about his past still wanted a piece of him.

Still, watching her now, black jeans, long sleeved black turtle neck sweater and standard hockey skates, she wasn't someone he would ever turn down if she approached him in a bar.

She was slight, but not in a super model kind of way. She seemed more on the lean side like she worked out regularly. Probably a health nut. Her hair was red, her real skin tone beginning to show through a fading farmers tan, and from what he could tell she was definitely Irish. Always a plus in his book.

Jem lurched forward as someone nudged him from behind. He turned to see the guys grinning at him.

"Aw, you already asked her." Douggy teased. His scowl returned.

"She was already out there when I came back." He said shortly walking over to his stuff. He grabbed his duffle going through it, vaguely aware that Douggy was heading for the ice. He looked over when he heard him speak.

"Excuse me." he called politely over the sound of the generators. Leave it to Douggy to be so charming. The woman looked over at him, skating over when he gestured for her to come closer. She looked absolutely unamused by the interruption.

Jem watched absently, shifting his focus between digging out his gloves and helmet and the conversation he couldn't hear between the woman and Doug. Every so often she looked over at him, and to his credit he did a decent job of pretending not to notice.

After about a minute the young woman nodded and Doug headed toward Jem and the others with a grin on his face. "She said she'll play, so me and Gloansy on goal, you and her shooting." he said to Jem. He then turned to Dez. "You mind keeping score?" Dez agreed taking a seat on the benches as the others got ready.

Jem put on his helmet and gloves, and was the second one after Gloansy on the ice. He looked over at the young woman confused.

"You gonna put pads on or what?" he asked her. She looked him over appraisingly, something he usually only got from authority figures. He had to be careful her actions were bringing out his rebellious streak.

"Don't have'em, don't need'em." was her reply. He could pick up a bit of an accent, Irish not Boston, but the way it fell from her lips made him think she was fighting to hide it.

"You're kidding right?" Doug asked as he skated behind her toward one of the goals. She shrugged.

"Not afraid of getting hit." she replied simply looking over at Jem. That just seemed to set him off as if she were challenging him. He cracked his neck, peeved by her impassive expression.

Doug rolled his eyes as he watched Jem skate back to the benches and deposit his pads and helmet. He then turned back meeting the young woman at the center circle where she and Dez were waiting with the puck.

"Subtle." Dez commented as they got into their stances ready to play. Dez dropped the puck and the young woman snatched it up without much effort. She dodged around Dez who did his best to get out the way and headed toward Gloansy's goal. Jem was hot on her tail trying to slip his stick in her path to snatch the puck back.

He moved up beside her trying to take the puck back. He moved up against her, shoulder to shoulder ready to take it until she shoved back hard knocking him to the ice as she shot at the goal scoring.

"What the fuck!" Jem exclaimed as she skated toward him.

"Suck it up Nancy." she told him skating passed and stopping at center ice. He growled getting up and skating toward her. They got back into position waiting for the puck to drop.

"If that's how you wanna play it, bring it on." Jem told her. "But don't expect me to pull punches."

"I'd be insulted if you did." she smirked the first bit of real expression he'd seen on her face so far.

"This isn't gonna end well." Dez mumbled to himself before dropping the puck and getting out of the way. This time Jem managed to grab the puck taking it toward Douggy's goal.

The young woman was on his tail but not close enough that he was worried. Once he was close enough he shot the puck only for Doug to stop it. It bounced off his shin pad and it slid to the side where she picked it up and ran it the other way.

Jem managed to catch up checking her into the wall and stealing the puck back. He didn't stop to watch her slide across the ice and into the wall, as he took the puck back down toward his goal. He scored but only because Douggy was too busy glaring at him as was Gloansy. If Dez was any kind of intimidating he'd probably have tried as well.

"Take it easy man." Douggy reprimanded. Jem shrugged.

"She started it." he threw back. She caught their attention as she skated around the back of the net.

"That the best you got Margrette?" She taunted moving as if she hadn't just been beaten to a pulp. Jem turned back to Douggy when he heard a snort of laughter. Douggy picked up the puck and tossed it at Jem.

"Chop chop Peggy." He teased, putting his mask back in place.

"Fuck you man." Jem snapped dropping the puck and jockeying it to the center. They started again. The puck dropped and Jem taking hold of it and down the ice. This time she kept up with him trying to take it back and knocking it behind the net before he could shoot. They went after it, mercilessly checking each other back and forth until she managed to get enough momentum to knock the puck along the boards and back toward Gloansy.

Jem got to it first taking it back around and down to Doug. He noticed her next to him and managed to keep the puck from her until suddenly he felt his feet pulled out from under him forcing him flat on his back. He barely registered her stick moving for the puck and taking it back down to her goal, missing the first and scoring the second time.

"Keep ending up on your back Lisa, I'm starting to think you like it down there." She taunted once again as she skated around him. If he heard his friends snorting and trying to hold in their laughter he ignored it, getting to his feet.

She was smirking at him, issuing a challenge, daring him to do something, to get angry. It's like she knew him, she knew about his short fuse. It was like she got off on playing dangerously, with the game, with him. She was playing with fire and she loved it. Craved it.

The game lasted another hour, leaving the others three completely flabbergasted at the level of intensity. What was supposed to be a simple pick-up game had somehow morphed into a no holds bar free for all. In fact it was Douggy who had to call an end to it fearing neither of them would stop until one of them-or both for that matter- ended up in traction.

"That was some pretty tough playin'." Douggy said to the young woman as she gathered up her things.

"Well it is hockey." She replied simply, making her way to the top of the bleachers where the exit to the lobby sat. "Thanks for the game guys, it was fun." she said with a light smirk before making herself scarce.

Jem packed up his stuff vaguely aware that someone was watching him. He looked up ready to leave only to find not one but three sets of eyes staring at him. "What?"

"Are you kidding?" Gloansy said a bit annoyed. "You just let her kick your ass and you're still not going to make a move?" Jem scowled.

"I didn't let her kick my ass." He snapped pushing passed them. They followed.

"Really, then who are you and what have you done with Jem Coughlin?" Douggy asked incredulously. "Because the Jem I know would never have let any of that happen without blowin' his top." Jem ignored him as he finally reached his car, dropping his stuff in the trunk. "Come on man, just admit. You like her. Doesn't mean you have to admit you were wrong. Just admit you like her."

Jem turned to face his oldest friend. He could see Gloansy and Dez watching them from Dez's work van. "I have to pick up Shyne at day care, I'll see you guys later." Was his only reply. It wasn't lost on any of them how uncharacteristic his tone was. Almost as if he felt defeated, depressed.

Of all the things Jem Coughlin was, self-pitying was not one of them. Jem was a strong, independent man, with a ruthless sense of humor and a sense of pride that had recently extended toward his niece Shyne. A year before their release Jem's little sister, Krysta gave birth to a little girl she named Shyne. Even she didn't know who the father was. About four months after his release from prison, Krysta was arrested for possession with the intent to sell. It also didn't help her case that when she was picked up she was high on her own product.

She was facing an easy twenty years thanks to her previous convictions and so she took a plea deal from the district attorney, turning over her supplier and leaving custody to Jem as part of the agreement. A last ditch effort on Jem's part to keep the youngest Coughlin out of the system. He didn't know what bothered him more at the time, the fact that she brought her daughter to the den she got high at or that he had to be the one to even suggest to her lawyer that they take care of Shyne.

One way or another, that little girl would never end up the way the rest of them did. She would have a fighting chance and he would do everything in his power to make sure of that. The only problem was, he was tired, worn out. Jem Coughlin was not one to run away from a challenge but there wasn't a day that went by that he didn't worry that something would go wrong, or worse he would hurt her in some way.

She was only two but he could already tell she was smart. She picked things up quickly, she seemed to love to learn, mental stimulation and all that jazz and he just couldn't help but worry that she would take after her mother despite how hard he worked to make sure that never happened.

He was no angel; he was the first to admit it. Robbing banks may not have been his first choice, but he really didn't go out of his way to avoid getting pulled into it. He would even go so far as to say he enjoyed it at the time, the adrenaline rush, the danger, it was exhilarating. He missed the excitement in his life, not knowing what was coming next. He missed not having a routine.

…To Be Continued


End file.
